Big Willie
Think harsh on Timber. That was his first start in one year and up against a CL team away. Calafori played well but he came on under easier game conditions. I’m sure if it was the other way round Timber would have looked as good. Good headache to have.
⚽ Aston Villa vs Arsenal, Saturday 24th, 5.30pm
I read that as Mikel is slightly pissed off with Jesus’ availability or lack thereof. Should bode well for the transfer window.
Sicario2 - Tier 1 Think harsh on Timber. That was his first start in one year and up against a CL team away. Calafori played well but he came on under easier game conditions. I’m sure if it was the other way round Timber would have looked as good. Good headache to have.
I did clarify in my follow up post tbh mentioning exactly the same thing.
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I should have added that he hasn't impressed me as an inverted left back as he's not really a ball progressor. I'm more keen on seeing him on his natural side where he would make better use of his speed and agility.
Our midfield and defence as a whole struggled to deal with Villa's mid-block, as has been the case since Porto away. The CB's weren't doing enough to step out from the back and the Partey-Timber axis wasn't doing enough to show for the ball.
Excellent win in the end.
I love how we can patiently build up in that 3-2 formation, that lets us really control games, but we need to mix it up sometimes. That quick long diagonal from Gabriel to Trossard for the second goal was exactly what we need to do a bit more often, change the pace and keep defenses guessing.
It was a bit weird having Rice as our furthest-forward midfielder today. Not sure that plays to his strengths, and we left Partey quite isolated and were vulnerable on counters.
I love the silky stuff from Ødegaard but we need more end product from him. He tends to be looking for clever “pre-assist” passes rather than the assist or the goal. Realistically he needs to hit 10 PL goals if we’re gonna win the league.
Raya MOTM, he was terrific.
Trossard scores just as many when he starts games. Martinelli also suits coming off the bench when the game is more open. That is a better use of Martinelli who does way better when we have more space to play on the break so he can use his pace.
Don Pacifico Well then we definitely need to do something in the market. Nelson is pointless.
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Clrnc Calafiori will have the LB nailed down. Timber and White will rotate alot for RB. Tomi will be back to take minutes off Calafiori when he need a breather and also to provide cover for CBs.
I doubt it unless Timber is injured. He looks much better suited to the invert LB role than Tomi. Tomi is good at RB though.
Hugely important win.
Martinelli upgrade needed
lorddulaarsenal and Jesus replacement
I actually thought Martinelli was better today. Still not great but I thought he was more dangerous running with the ball. The Martinelli/Trossard combo is a very good one.
Still need another attacker though as we all know.
I'm good with the lw combo too. We'd have to break the bank to level up there. We need a better forward or rw option
Tough game, but it's in these matches where you learn about your weaknesses. Martinelli wasn't great, but I'm still not that worried about him. We just need another forward, especially considering Jesus is a mess.
The midfield was unable to deal with Aston Villa's midblock press and running power. A lot of this was due to Rice being so high that he couldn't cover for a struggling Partey, who needs replacing.
Rest of the team looks pretty excellent, honestly. Odegaard had a poor game, but I'm not worried about him, either.
Trossard is a fantastic impact sub, whether he likes it or not.
Big result given the games against them were ultimately what cost us last season. Did highlight we're in need of another forward though and the lack of a striker may be where we fall short this season.
Wish we had signed Onana